Location 2: Lisboa
After spending 4 days in Barcelona, I took the high-speed AVE train from Barcelona to Madrid, and then the overnight train from Madrid to Lisbon. Due to the delayed arrival of my Barcelona train, I almost missed the one from Madrid, but luckily I found another backpacker on the connecting train (we had to transfer between train stations in Madrid), and together we figured it out just in time.
I´d forgotten how enjoyable sleeper trains can be. Not only do you go to sleep in one city and wake up in another, which is just a wonderful concept by itself, but it´s conducive to meeting some very interesting people. I got on the train, and immediately was invited to have an "after dinner drink" with my compartment-mate. Turns out he´s an anthropology PhD student from Finland, studying the remains and evolution of Portugese culture in their former African colonies. We finished off a bottle of wine discussing his work, among other things, and then we returned to the compartment, crawled into bed, and woke up in Lisbon.
After figuring out how to get to my hotel via the metro (yes, I could´ve taken a cab, but this was more fun), I realized that Lisbon is a lot like San Francisco in it´s layout. It´s situated on a peninsula, flanked by a bay and the ocean. It´s an eminently walkable city, with distinct neighborhood vibes. And, most crucially for me, it has lots and lots of steep hills, with trolleys that ease the climb. Determined to put my legs to the test, I hiked up a particularly steep hill with my large backpack, as locals passing on the trolley gave me the "stupid tourist" shake of the head. The trolleys here are a bright yellow, and very symbolic of the city -- they´re on all the tourist paraphenelia, anyway.
The first day I checked in, took a short nap, and then set out to explore the city. I promptly got lost in the Alfama district, notorious for its small alleyways and labyrinthine layout. It´s the old section of town, built originally by the Moors when they ruled in Lisbon many centuries ago. Hours (and many hills) later I found my way out, after having seen some of the really beautiful views and some of the great sights, including the Se Cathedral and the Castle on the hill...it´s name escapes me for the moment, but it overlooks the entire city and is quite beautiful (also built by the Moors a very long time ago). I spent the rest of the day wandering the city, and returned so exhausted and tired that I promptly fell asleep.
A word on the heat. It´s hot here. Today it hit 40C (that´s over 100F). I´ve sweat off at least a few pounds in the few days I´ve been here, consumed more bottles of water than I care to count, and climbed that damn hill every single time. It´s a little silly, but what the heck. It keeps me in shape.
Yesterday I spent the day wandering about the city some more, and then went to Belem, which is a nearby neighborhood in Lisbon. Most notable in Belem is the monastary, originally built by the King Emanuel, from which Portugal sent and received all its famous explorers and traders. The monestary itself is quite beautiful, especially in the afternoon sunlight, and once housed over a 100 monks of the St. Jerome order. The tombs of several kings lie there, as well as the tomb of Vasco de Gama.
Today was spent on a tour of nearby Sintra, as well as some of the nearby beaches at Guiche and Caiscais. I´ll post more on those later. As for my schedule...I leave on the night train tomorrow night to Madrid, from there to Barcelona, and then a local train to Girona. I´ll spend a couple days in Girona, then back to Barcelona, and then on to Southern France, perhaps with a brief stop in Cadaques.
After spending 4 days in Barcelona, I took the high-speed AVE train from Barcelona to Madrid, and then the overnight train from Madrid to Lisbon. Due to the delayed arrival of my Barcelona train, I almost missed the one from Madrid, but luckily I found another backpacker on the connecting train (we had to transfer between train stations in Madrid), and together we figured it out just in time.
I´d forgotten how enjoyable sleeper trains can be. Not only do you go to sleep in one city and wake up in another, which is just a wonderful concept by itself, but it´s conducive to meeting some very interesting people. I got on the train, and immediately was invited to have an "after dinner drink" with my compartment-mate. Turns out he´s an anthropology PhD student from Finland, studying the remains and evolution of Portugese culture in their former African colonies. We finished off a bottle of wine discussing his work, among other things, and then we returned to the compartment, crawled into bed, and woke up in Lisbon.
After figuring out how to get to my hotel via the metro (yes, I could´ve taken a cab, but this was more fun), I realized that Lisbon is a lot like San Francisco in it´s layout. It´s situated on a peninsula, flanked by a bay and the ocean. It´s an eminently walkable city, with distinct neighborhood vibes. And, most crucially for me, it has lots and lots of steep hills, with trolleys that ease the climb. Determined to put my legs to the test, I hiked up a particularly steep hill with my large backpack, as locals passing on the trolley gave me the "stupid tourist" shake of the head. The trolleys here are a bright yellow, and very symbolic of the city -- they´re on all the tourist paraphenelia, anyway.
The first day I checked in, took a short nap, and then set out to explore the city. I promptly got lost in the Alfama district, notorious for its small alleyways and labyrinthine layout. It´s the old section of town, built originally by the Moors when they ruled in Lisbon many centuries ago. Hours (and many hills) later I found my way out, after having seen some of the really beautiful views and some of the great sights, including the Se Cathedral and the Castle on the hill...it´s name escapes me for the moment, but it overlooks the entire city and is quite beautiful (also built by the Moors a very long time ago). I spent the rest of the day wandering the city, and returned so exhausted and tired that I promptly fell asleep.
A word on the heat. It´s hot here. Today it hit 40C (that´s over 100F). I´ve sweat off at least a few pounds in the few days I´ve been here, consumed more bottles of water than I care to count, and climbed that damn hill every single time. It´s a little silly, but what the heck. It keeps me in shape.
Yesterday I spent the day wandering about the city some more, and then went to Belem, which is a nearby neighborhood in Lisbon. Most notable in Belem is the monastary, originally built by the King Emanuel, from which Portugal sent and received all its famous explorers and traders. The monestary itself is quite beautiful, especially in the afternoon sunlight, and once housed over a 100 monks of the St. Jerome order. The tombs of several kings lie there, as well as the tomb of Vasco de Gama.
Today was spent on a tour of nearby Sintra, as well as some of the nearby beaches at Guiche and Caiscais. I´ll post more on those later. As for my schedule...I leave on the night train tomorrow night to Madrid, from there to Barcelona, and then a local train to Girona. I´ll spend a couple days in Girona, then back to Barcelona, and then on to Southern France, perhaps with a brief stop in Cadaques.
Labels: My Random Life
posted by slithytoves at 3:16 PM
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